Russia Opens Virtual Access to Nuclear Reactor for Students Worldwide

Russia, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research have joined forces to create an innovative educational project—the Reactor Internet Laboratory. This agreement marks a new stage in international cooperation for training specialists in peaceful nuclear energy. The project will allow students from countries without their own research reactors to participate remotely in real experiments at the unique IBR-2 facility in Dubna.

Thanks to this initiative, future physicists and engineers will be able to watch the reactor in real time via live internet streams, communicate with operators, and conduct training experiments by sending commands to adjust settings. This creates a full-immersion learning effect, despite the thousands of miles separating classrooms from the research site.

Russian experts play a central role in this breakthrough project. Rosatom’s Technical Academy will oversee the educational component, while the Joint Institute’s powerful research base will serve as the physical core of the virtual lab. The IAEA will act as curator in developing training programs and methods. During the academic year, up to six demonstration experiments are planned for students, reports 'Atomnaya Energiya'

This step strengthens Russia’s position as a leader in nuclear education and highlights its openness to advancing global science. The project is also a striking example of digital transformation in the nuclear sector, erasing geographic barriers to knowledge.